


Kept at Arm's Length

by lionessvalenti



Category: Snow White and the Huntsman (2012)
Genre: First Kiss, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-17
Updated: 2013-12-17
Packaged: 2018-01-04 22:00:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1086149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lionessvalenti/pseuds/lionessvalenti
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>William doesn't speak to Eric, but when they are sent together to deliver a message from the Queen, he's forced to reveal everything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Kept at Arm's Length

**Author's Note:**

  * For [V_V_lala](https://archiveofourown.org/users/V_V_lala/gifts).



The rain fell steady, as it had been for the day William and Eric had been riding, with no end in sight. The clouds kept rolling in, each one darker than the last.

"How are you holding up?" Eric called over his shoulder to William.

"I'm fine," William replied, and he barely sounded convincing to his own ears.

The truth was, William was soaked through. It had been bearable when they started, when it was solitary drops rolling down his neck, but after a day of it, he was cold and uncomfortable; his leather coat could not even keep out the rain.

They were only on the road from Tabor by order of the Queen. Snow White had sent them together to take news to a neighboring kingdom. One that, under King Magnus' rule, had been a friend, but while Ravenna reigned, they had been alienated. Snow White wanted them to know that an ally had returned to them.

There must have been more to it, William surmised, because she sent him with Eric. "I trust no one else with this," she had said. "And I trust the two of you more than anyone in all the kingdom."

Eric slowed his horse and rode alongside William. "You don't like me much, do you?"

William shrugged as he suppressed a shiver. "I like you fine."

"We fought together, side-by-side, like brothers. Did that mean nothing to you?"

"We are _not_ brothers," William snapped, more harshly than he truly felt. "You fought for a day, while I have fought for years in the King's name. I did everything in my power to take down Ravenna, while you sat in a tavern and drank. And now you're an honored member of the Queensguard. And what does that make me? A fool, apparently. If I'd known that being a drunk was all it would take for a place of such honor, I would have done that instead."

Eric didn't seem put off by William's words. In fact he smiled. He raised his eyebrows as he considered his answer. "You're the Duke's son. You're probably going to marry Snow White. Or would you rather be in the Queensguard instead of being king? While married to the most beautiful woman in the land, whom you clearly love."

"I'd rather not talk about it," William replied. He was about to nudge his horse forward, faster, when he was ravaged by a cough deep within his chest. The pain from it spread all through his back, and even into his arms.

"You are _not_ fine," Eric said, reaching over with one hand to take a hold of William's arm. "We should stop. You should rest."

William swallowed hard. Between his dizziness, the cold, and Eric's hand upon him, it was hard to think. He wrenched his arm away. "We can't stop. We're wasting time as it is."

"You're ill," Eric said.

"I'm fine," William insisted, but it was weak. "Let's move and we can be back to Tabor sooner."

Eric hesitated, and then he nodded. "As you wish." He urge his horse ahead, faster to lead the way, and his mare's hooves slipped on the muddy road, and she and Eric both went down. They fell to the side of the road and slid down a steep slope of grass.

"Eric!" William shouted as he brought his own horse to a stop. He dismounted and began down the slope, but found it too slick from the rain to walk upon. He fell onto his backside and slid down the hill, holding one foot out in front of him to stop himself before he fell onto the pile of man and horse at the bottom.

The mare had already gotten to her feet and seemed no worse for the wear by the time William found them, but Eric was splayed out, one arm over his chest, and his face taking the rain.

"Eric," William tried, leaning over him to make sure he was still breathing. He was, much to William's relief, but that was all the relief he had. Eric must have hit his head, and William was no medic. He had no idea what he was supposed to next.

Getting them somewhere dry seemed like a reasonable next step, so he stood and looked around. There were no dwellings or even caves, but he saw a gathering of trees that looked a bit less wet. He could drag Eric, who was a much larger man, both taller and broader, just that far. It would be easier if he thought for a moment that he'd be able to lift him onto the mare, but dragging would have to do.

William got his feet underneath of him as well as he could, his boot sinking into the mud, and then bent over, shoving his hand beneath Eric's arms. He began to drag the huntsman toward the trees, and while he was aided by the slick grass, it wasn't easy. By the time he reached the trees (where it was considerably drier), William was panting and coughing even more.

He slumped down against the trunk of one of the trees and tried to catch his breath. He looked over at Eric and wondered what he should do next. Try to wake him? If he could wake, wouldn't he have by now? William looked up at the mare, who had followed him, and thought of his own horse. Should he go back and get him?

While he deliberated, his horse, a much smarter creature than himself, William thought with a chuckle, appeared out of nowhere. He must have found a better way of getting down than sliding down the slope with no control. He hoped they could find that route when the rain stopped.

William coughed hard into his sleeve, feeling colder than ever. It was a day's ride back to Tabor, and that was where they needed to go. The Queen's message would have to wait, and he knew she would understand. She wouldn't want them going forward sick and injured. But that would have to wait until Eric woke. Until then, they weren't going anywhere.

* * *

William had thought there was no possible way he could fall asleep, not with his cough and in the rain, but here he was, waking up in the darkness. Not just cloud cover, but the dark of night, when it had been certainly been day when he had closed his eyes.

He leaned over and checked on Eric, and he was still out, but also still breathing. That was all William needed from him right then.

William got to his feet and let his eyes adjust as well as they could to the darkness, and then tried to find some wood that might be dry. He was pleased to discover that he the rain had all but stopped, but all the sticks and kindling he could find by touch were as soaked through as he was. He gathered them anyway.

When he got back to the trees, Eric was awake, but he sounded dazed as he asked, "What happened?"

"Your horse slipped in the mud and you hit your head," William replied. "You've been knocked out for hours. I had to keep checking to make sure you were still alive."

"That explains the pain," Eric said, reaching up to touch the back of his head. He peered through the darkness at William. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," William said, feeling like that's all he'd been saying for a day. "Do you think you could help me start a fire? The wood is wet, but we might have some luck."

It took time, but together they started a meager fire. It was mostly smoke, but there was heat, which was more than they had before. They huddled together around it, Eric's shoulder right up against William's.

William turned his head away to cough deeply, and when he turned back, Eric was pressing a flask into his hand.

"Drink," he said. "It will help with that cough."

"I'm not used to being ill," William said as he took a swing from the flask. It was thick, almost like a syrup, and the alcohol burned at the back of his throat, but it warmed him almost instantly. He was reminded of drinking wine in a wood like this not long ago, talking while they watched Snow White sleep. "Thank you."

Eric smiled. "So, you do _not_ hate me. I wasn't sure, since you haven't said more than ten words to me before today since Snow White became Queen."

"I never hated you," William said quietly. "I loved nothing more than fighting alongside you, and I wish to again, if it's needed, but you're right... I'm probably going to marry Snow White."

"You make this sound like a burden," Eric said, almost laughing. "I know you love her, and we all know of her beauty, and her heart."

"I do, I love her. I love her dearly. She was my first friend as a child, and I mourned her every day I thought she was dead, and when I found out that she was alive, my life was given new purpose, but..." William took another drink from the flask. "When I think of bedding her, I'm afraid."

This time, Eric did laugh. "Have you bedded a woman before?"

William's shoulders stiffened and he looked away. "I've been... busy. Restoring a kingdom takes time."

"And what are you afraid of?" Eric asked, and William could hear the smile in his voice.

"All of it, I suppose. Laughter."

"Then let me assure you of something." Eric wrapped an arm around William's shoulders, pulling him closer. "Laughter, while in the bed of a woman, is a good thing. Some of the best moments come from laughter."

William drank once more before handing the flask back to Eric. "It might help if I... if I loved Snow White like a lover should. Or if I had ever loved any woman in that way. I've spent all of this time working to restore the kingdom, to bring rightful blood back into power, and a part of me is sad that it's done. Now the time has come to face the truth of who I am. I cannot hide behind war and an evil queen any longer. People will be expecting me to marry -- to marry Snow White -- and I don't know if I can. I can't tell anyone why. No one would understand. My father, certainly, would not understand."

Eric was quiet for a long time, and William was sure he was going to pull away after this confession, but he did not. His arm stayed firmly around William's shoulders, and that warmed him more than any spirits could.

"I had a wife," Eric said softly, "and I loved her more than anything in this world. And now no other woman can compare to her, not even our Queen, whom I love the same as you. Instead of fighting, I sat in a tavern and I drank, missing my wife and making my life worthless. And now that I've found a worthiness again, there's still no woman for me."

"So, you would never be in love again?" William asked. He knew what he was asking, a dim hope in his chest, but it seemed impossible to even think of it.

Eric reached over with his other hand and brought it to William's face. His fingers were cold, but William liked the way they felt, pulling against his stubble. Even under his cold, damp trousers, he could feel a stirring.

"No _woman_ ," Eric said, his voice low and rough, almost like a purr in William's ear. "I don't think we are like brothers, either. But you never spoke a word to me."

William's eyes widened and he smiled. His heart began to pound and that dim hope shone like a beacon. "It was easier to keep you at arm's length. To not grow close to what I could not have."

"And I wanted to keep you close," Eric said. He leaned in closer and pressed his forehead to William's, and his breath was warm on William's cheek. "When we fought Ravenna's glass men, I couldn't help it. My first thought was to make sure you were all right. I knew my priorities should have been with Snow White, but they were with you, to know that you were safe."

"I am safe," William said, his voice scarcely above a whisper. He reached up and awkwardly touched Eric's hair. "How does your head feel?"

"Clear," Eric replied and he pressed his mouth to William's.

William nearly jerked away from Eric in surprise, but he melted into the kiss, moaning. He pulled back slowly. "Oh," he breathed. "That was... good. It was good."

Eric chuckled and rested his head atop William's, like it was always meant to be there.

William let his body relax against Eric's. They might be ill and injured, but suddenly they were together. It still seemed too surreal, like perhaps he had been ravaged with fever (which was entirely possible, he supposed), and this was all a delusion. But Eric was warm around him and William felt nothing but comfort. That could not be a delusion. It could only be truth.

"We'll have to go back," William said. "We can't ride for another three days like this. You need to see a medic."

"So do you," Eric replied. "I haven't forgotten about that cough."

William smiled for a moment, but it disappeared just as quickly. "The Queen will be disappointed. We had a duty and--"

"She'll understand. She cares more for our health." Eric touched William's face again, guiding his chin up they were looking eye-to-eye. "And our happiness. And I believe that of her. For us."

William let his head drop against Eric's shoulder. "I think you're right." His eyelids drooped, and as much as he wanted to lift his head and kiss Eric, he felt sleep coming on strong, maybe from his illness or the drink Eric had given him. He'd never been one for much wine, let alone strong spirits.

"Rest," Eric said, a smile in his voice, "and I'll kiss you again in the morning."

"That sounds nice," William mumbled, and that was the last thing he remembered before drifting off to sleep.


End file.
